Poker game

ABSTRACT

The method of the present invention involves a poker game in which a player is dealt a plurality of cards from which he makes a plurality, N, of starting hands. Each starting hand has a wager associated with it. After the player sets his starting hands, an opposing house starting hand is created, preferably from a number of cards capable of creating a plurality of starting hands. The player&#39;s first starting hand is completed as is the opposing house hand. If the player&#39;s first completed hand beats the opposing hand, the player receives an award and the player&#39;s next completed hand is compared to the opposing hand. If the player&#39;s first completed hand loses to the opposing hand, all wagers are lost and the game is over. This process continues until all N starting hands have been completed and evaluated or until the player loses the nth starting hand resulting in all nth to N wagers being lost.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent application is a continuation of application Ser. No.12/802,599 which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 12/384,756,filed Apr. 7,2009, which is continuation-in-part of application Ser. No.11/732,529 filed Apr. 4, 2007.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is an improved poker game. There are a number ofvariations of poker games. In some variations, such as Hold 'Em andOmaha, each player is dealt an initial starting hand of two or fourcards respectively. In both Hold 'Em and Omaha, after each player isdealt an initial starting hand, five community cards (or a board) isdealt and each player makes the best possible five-card hand using acombination of the starting hands and the board cards. In other pokergames such as Seven-Card Stud and Razz, each player's starting handconsists of three cards and then each player receives four additionalcards to complete the individual's hand. In a typical poker game, oncean individual's hand is completed it is compared against the hands ofone or more opponents and the winner receives an award. In other pokergames, such as video poker, the player's completed hand is comparedagainst a pay table to determine if any award will be made.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is ideally suited for Hold 'Em, but may be appliedto other poker variations. It may be played either in a live format oron an electronic gaming machine. The invention is characterized by aplayer receiving a plurality of cards from which he makes a plurality ofstarting hands. For instance, in the preferred embodiment using Hold'Em, the player receives six cards from which he makes three startinghands. In the preferred embodiment, each starting hand will have aseparate wager associated with it. Preferably, each wager will be equaland will be determined prior to the player receiving his initial cardsand will remain constant throughout the game. The player's opponent,typically a house or bank, also may receive a number of cards capable ofmaking a plurality of starting hands. However, in the preferredembodiment, the house will only make a single starting hand and theexcess cards will be discarded. The number of cards the house receivesmay be the same as the player or may be different.

Once the player has set his plurality of starting hands and the househas set its starting hand, the hands are completed. In the preferredHold 'Em embodiment, this is done by dealing a board of five communitycards and the same five community cards are used to complete all of theplayer's starting hands as well as the house's starting hand. After thehands have been completed, the house's hand and player's hands arecompared. If the player's first hand is of higher value than the house'shand, the player receives an award based upon the wager associated withthe first hand. If the player wins the first hand, his second hand iscompared to the house's hand and an award paid if it is of higher valuethan the house's hand. However, if the player loses the first hand, thewagers associated with the first hand, the second hand—and anysubsequent hand—is forfeited. Similarly, the third hand (and any othersubsequent hand) is only eligible for an award if the player wins theprior hand.

As used herein, “win” may mean anything as defined by the house rulesfor the game. But typically, “win” will mean any hand having a higherpoker value than the player's opponent. It may also mean a tie, such aswhen the community cards form a straight and neither the house nor theplayer can make a higher straight or flush. Alternatively, ties may becounted as a loss. In the preferred embodiment, a tie will be treated as“no action” and the player's wager associated with the hand will not beforfeited and the subsequent hand will be evaluated.

The amount the player is awarded for a win is preferably determined by apay table. Preferably the pay table amounts will increase for subsequenthands, such that the player generally receives larger awards for winninga subsequent hand than for winning a prior hand. The pay table may besimple such that the player's award is the same regardless of the rankof hand he makes, or the pay table may be complex such that the rank ofthe player's hand determines the amount of the award. In the preferredembodiment, a simple pay table is used for all three hands—the firsthand pays even money for a win, the second hand pays three times thewager and the third hand pays ten times the wager.

In alternative embodiments, the player may make wagers in addition to orin lieu of the primary wagers discussed previously. For instance, in onealternative embodiment, the player may make one or more insurancewagers. An insurance wager as used herein would allow a player toproceed to at least one subsequent hand even if a prior hand was lost.The insurance wager may be specific to one associated losing hand, or inalternative arrangements, it may cover all hands. In the embodimentswhere a single insurance wager may cover multiple hands, the number ofhands that are insured, may be determined by the size of the wager.

Another alternative wager that may be made in alternative embodiments isa side wager on the poker hand strength of the initial cards dealt tothe player. Preferably, this wager is paid against a pay table wherehigher ranked poker hands pay off greater amounts. In some variations,the payout for the side wager will be independent of how the playerdivides the initial cards into starting hands or whether the startinghands beat the dealer. In other variations, the player may have to setthe starting hands in a certain combination to receive a payout or thepayout may be based upon how the starting hands fare against the dealer.For instance, in the preferred embodiment where the player is dealt aninitial hand of six cards that he divides into three two-card startinghands to play the game of Hold 'Em, the side wager may be based on thepoker ranking of the initial six cards dealt. The poker ranking couldinclude the traditional ranking of five-card poker hands or otheralternatives, such as six-card hands or four-card hands. In the examplewhere the four-card poker ranking is used, the wager may only be paid onthe four cards that form the player's first and second hands as anexample of the side wager being dependent on how the player sets thethree starting hands. As an example of the side wager being dependent onhow the player's starting hands fare against the dealer, the amount paidfor side wager may be paid only if the player beats the dealer on one ormore starting hands. Alternatively, the amount paid for the side wager(based off the same pay table as before) may be modified, for instancedoubled, if the player loses all three of the primary wagers.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

Traditional poker played in a casino is a game where the players betagainst each other and the house takes a percentage of the bets.However, other poker variants have become popular where a player ormultiple players may play a game against the house. These games areplayed in the pit, alongside other traditional casino games such asblack jack. One such game is Three Card Poker. In Three Card Poker theplayer makes an ante and then the player and house each receive threecards. The player then determines if he wishes to play or forfeit hisante. If he does not wish to play on, he folds and forfeits his ante. Ifhe wishes to play on he places another wager matching the ante. Then thedealer reveals the house hand and if it is a Queen high or better hand(i.e., a qualifying hand) the house plays against the player(s). If thehouse doesn't qualify, all players that elected to play on receive amatching wager on their ante, but there is no action on the secondwager. If the house qualifies, the house hand is compared to theplayer's hand or players' hands, and if the player(s) wins( ) bothwagers are paid a matching award. The game also offers a third wageroption where the rank of the player's hand is evaluated against acomplex pay table to determine if an award is paid, and of what size theaward would be.

Another such house game is Pai Gow Poker. In Pai Gow Poker the playerplaces a single wager and receives seven cards. The dealer also receivesseven cards. The player separates his cards into a five-card hand and atwo-card hand. The dealer does the same. The hands are then revealed andif the player's five-card hand beats the dealer's five-card hand and theplayer's two-card hand beats the dealer's two-card hand the player winsan award matching his wager. If the player loses both hands, the playerloses his wager. If the player loses one hand and wins one hand, thegame is a push. The house has an edge in the game by requiring theplayer to pay a five percent commission on all winning wagers.

Poker games may also be played on an electronic gaming machine.Electronic gaming machines, also generally referred to as slot machines,have long been a mainstay of the gaming industry. The most popular formof video poker is five-card draw. In five-card draw, the player places awager before receiving a starting hand of five cards. The player maydiscard none to all of the cards in the starting hand to receivereplacement cards. The five card hand formed by the held cards and thereplacement cards is then compared to a complex pay table to determine apayout, if any, to be given to the player. Another variation of thestandard five-card draw video poker game is Multi-Strike Poker. Thisgame is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,612,927.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new typeof poker game that offers players a new and stimulating type ofstrategic decision.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a table layout for playing the preferred embodiment with adealer.

FIG. 2 is a gaming machine that may be used for playing the presentinvention electronically.

FIG. 3 is schematic of the internal components of a gaming machine suchas the one shown in FIG. 2.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

One embodiment of the present invention may be played on a table 50 asshown in FIG. 1. A dealer employed by the casino stands behind the table50 with access to a tray 55. The tray 55 holds chips of variousdenominations used to payout players' winning wagers. Each player sitsat the table 50 behind a player position 60. In the preferredembodiment, each player position has a first hand position 62 a, asecond hand position 62 b and a third hand position 62 c. Each handposition 62 also has an associated wager circle 64 located directly infront of the hand position 62 where players place their wagers on thehand. Preferably, the table 50 also has at least one legend 66 showingthe pay table associated with each hand. In the preferred embodiment asillustrated by the legend 66 on the table 50 shown in FIG. 1, the firstwager pays even money for a win, the second wager pays three to one fora win and the third wager pays ten to one for a win.

Play of the game begins by each player placing a wager in the wagercircles 64 of their player position 60. In the preferred embodiment, awager must be placed in each wager circle 64 of each occupied playerposition 60 and each wager must be of equal value. Once all of thewagers have been placed, the dealer deals a number of cards to eachoccupied player position 60 and to the dealer from a randomly shuffleddeck of cards. Preferably it is a standard fifty-two card deck. In thepreferred embodiment, the dealer deals six cards to each player as wellas six cards to the dealer. The player then examines his number of cardsand divides them into the required number of starting hands and placeseach starting hand in its respective hand position 62. In the preferredembodiment, each player makes three starting hands consisting of twocards. The first starting hand is placed in the first position 62 a. Thesecond starting hand is placed in the second position 62 b. The thirdstarting hand is placed in the third position 62 c. Preferably, thecards are dealt face down and players are not permitted to look at thecards of the other players. Each hand is placed face down in its handposition 62.

Once each player has placed his hands in the desired hand positions 62,the dealer turns his cards face up and forms one starting hand. In thepreferred embodiment, this will involve making one two-card startinghand from six cards. The dealer will preferably use pre-defined rules tocreate the house starting hand. In the preferred embodiment, the rulesdictate that the dealer plays the highest pair in his six cards and ifno pairs are present, the dealer plays his two highest cards in rank.Other rules for setting the house hand may be used. These rules mayresult in either a statistically superior or inferior starting hand forthe house, as desired. It will be appreciated by those skilled in theart that adjusting the rules to arrive at a statistically superiorstarting hand will lower the player's expected return on his wager,while a statistically inferior hand will raise the player's expectedreturn. Once the dealer has determined the “house-way” to set hisstarting hand, the remaining cards from the dealer's hand are discardedand the house's starting hand is placed face up in a house starting handposition 68.

After the dealer has set the house starting hand, the players' firststarting hands located in the first hand positions 62 a may be turnedface up. Alternatively, all of the players' starting hands may be turnedface up. The dealer will then complete at least the player's firststarting hand, as well as the dealer's hand. In the preferred embodimentwhere the game is Hold 'Em, this is done simultaneously by dealing fivecommunity cards. The community cards are placed in a community cardlocation 70. Preferably, these same community cards will be used tocomplete the player's other hands as well. Thus, it makes no differenceif all of the player's hands are turned face up at once. After theplayer's first hand is completed, the dealer will compare it to thedealer's completed hand. If the player loses the first hand, the dealerwill collect not only the player's first hand, but also each additionalhand along with each wager in the player's associated wager circles 64.Thus, losing the first hand costs the player not only his first wager,but all other wagers as well. If the player wins the first hand, thedealer pays the player according to the legend 66, i.e., an amount equalto one times the amount in the wager circle 64 associated with the firsthand position 62 a. When there are more than one occupied playerposition 60 at the table, the dealer will preferably evaluate theplayers' hands in an orderly manner. For instance, the dealer mayevaluate the left-most player's first hand first and then moveclock-wise around the table evaluating the first hand of any additionalplayers.

If the player wins the first hand, the dealer will also evaluate theplayer's second hand formed by the cards in the player's second handposition 62 b and the cards in the community card location 70 andcompare the player's second hand to the dealer's hand. Again, if theplayer loses the second hand the dealer will collect the player's secondstarting hand and third starting hand and the wagers associatedtherewith. If the player wins the second hand, the dealer will make thepayout defined by the legend 66 and proceed to evaluate the player'sthird hand and make any required payouts.

Once all of the players' hands have either been completed and evaluatedor have been “killed” by virtue of the player losing a previous hand,the game is completed and play of the game starts over by playersreplacing wagers in the wager circles 64.

In addition to the gaming table 50 illustrated in FIG. 1, the presentinvention may also be deployed on a gaming device 100 as illustrated inFIG. 2. Gaming device 100 has the features of a conventional slotmachine. The gaming device 100 shown in FIG. 2 is what is commonlyreferred to as an upright slot machine and the player can operate itwhile standing or sitting. Most often the gaming device 100 ispreferably mounted on a stand. (Not shown.) Although an up-right slotmachine is shown in FIG. 2, it can be appreciated that the gaming device100 can be any other style of gaming machine known in the art including,but not limited to a pub-style table-top or slant-top game which aplayer can operate while sitting. The gaming device 100 can beconstructed with varying cabinet and display designs.

Gaming device 100 can incorporate any primary game including, but notlimited to the present invention, reel slots, traditional video poker,blackjack, keno or bingo. Gaming device 100 shown in FIG. 2 has a videodisplay 105 for displaying symbols such as playing cards used in thepresent invention.

It should be appreciated that the display devices may display any visualrepresentation or exhibition, including but not limited to video imagesor movement of physical objects. The display devices can be a videomonitor or screen, a liquid crystal display or any other displaymechanism. Furthermore, it should be appreciated that these displaydevices may preferably include touch screens.

As shown in FIG. 2, gaming device 100 preferably includes one or morewager accepting mechanisms. The primary wager accepting mechanism on thegaming device 100 shown in FIG. 2 may be a bill validator 110. The billvalidator 110 may also accept other forms of payment including, but notlimited to tickets, smart cards, debit cards and credit cards.Alternatively, some of these forms of payment may be accepted through acard reader 130. The card reader 130 may include any type of cardreading device, such as a magnetic card reader or an optical cardreader. The player will insert a card, such as a player tracking card ora credit card into the card reader 130 which will then read data fromthe card. The card reader 130 may be used to read and/or write fromand/or to the inserted card. There may also be a coin slot 120 on thegaming device 100 in which a player can insert coins or tokens.

After a player inserts money in the gaming device 100, either via thecoin slot 120, the bill validator 110 or the card reader 130, a numberof credits corresponding to the amount deposited is shown in a creditdisplay 140. After money is credited to the machine 100 and shown on thecredit display 140, the player then determines the wager amount. Themachine 100 may have any number of mechanisms known in the art forallowing a player to determine his wager. As the player is selecting thewager amount, this wager amount is displayed on a bet display 160. Asthe bet display 160 amount is incrementing, the credit meter 140 amountis decreasing by the corresponding amount.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the general electronic configuration thatmay be incorporated in gaming device 100. The configuration preferablyincludes a processor 200. The processor 200 is preferably amicrocontroller-based platform or microprocessor which is capable ofdisplaying images, symbols and other indicia such as images of people,characters, places, things and faces of cards. One or more secondaryprocessors may also be employed in conjunction with the primaryprocessor to control certain aspects of the game function.

The gaming device 100 also includes a memory device 210 for storingprogram code or other data. This memory device 210 can include both readonly memory (ROM) 205 and random access memory (RAM) 207. One of thefunctions performed by a program or sub-program in the processor 200 maybe a random number generator (RNG) using any of several methods known tothose skilled in the art. In addition to the memory device 210, theelectronic configuration of the gaming device 100 may also include oneor more input devices 220, one or more display devices 230, a sound card240, and one or more speakers 250.

The input devices 220 may include but are not limited to a deal/drawbutton 145, a bet one credit button 170, a max bet button 150 and a cashout button 180. Initiating the cash out button 180 may result in theplayer's balance from the credit meter 140 being deposited into a tray190 in the form of coin, cash, a ticket or any other suitable media.Additional buttons 171, 172, 173, 174, 175 and 176 may be provided forarranging the player's starting hands. In situations where a touchscreen 260 is used, a touch screen controller 265 and touch screen 260are connected to a video controller 270 and the processor 200.

Although FIG. 3 shows the processor 200 and memory device 210 residingon the gaming device 100, it should be appreciated that it is possiblefor both the processor 200 and memory device 210 to reside at a centrallocation instead of at the gaming device 100. In such a situation, anetwork server may be used to communicate to the gaming device over anInternet connection, local area network (LAN), or wide area network(WAN). The processor 200 and memory device 210 are generally referred toherein as the controller.

In addition to the wagers placed in the wager circles 64, players mayalso place what are known as “side wagers.” These wagers may result in apayout in addition to the standard payout indicated by the legend 66 orthe pay table if the player's hand is of a specified ranking, e.g., aroyal flush. The side wager may be associated with a single specificstarting hand or all of the starting hands. Additionally, the player maybe awarded a payout for a side wager even if the player lost theassociated starting hand. For instance, the player may receive an awardfor a side wager if he makes a straight flush even though the house beathis hand with a higher straight flush.

In addition to the payouts already discussed, the present invention mayoffer a payout for what is commonly known as a “Bad Beat.” Bad Beatjackpots have been offered to poker players in live card rooms forsometime. Typically these jackpots are progressive in nature (althoughthey may be of a predetermined fixed amount) and are awarded to a playerthat loses with a very powerful poker hand (for instance Four of a Kindor a Straight Flush). In some situations, a percentage of theprogressive amount is also awarded to the player that had the betterhand and another percentage may be awarded to the other players at thetable or in the card room. (For instance, a Bad Beat may award theplayer with the losing hand 50% of the jackpot, the player with thewinning hand 30% of the jackpot, the other players at the table maysplit 10% of the jackpot and the other players in the card room atdifferent tables may split the remaining 10% of the jackpot.) In gameslike Hold 'Em where the players all use common community cards, theremay also be requirements that one or both of the player's starting cardsmust play. Because the player of the present invention is playingagainst a house hand, it would be quite simple to add a Bad Beat jackpotto a game employing the present invention. Preferably, this jackpotwould be a progressive amount that increases as the play on the gamecontinues and multiple tables 50 or gaming devices 100 could be linkedin a manner well known in the art to provide for even larger and fastergrowing jackpots. Like the Bad Beats offered in card rooms, the playermay either win the entire jackpot when he has a hand of a given rankthat is beaten or he may win a portion of the jackpot for either havinghis hand beaten, beating a powerful hand, or playing at the same table60—or in the case where multiple gaming machines 100 or tables 60 havebeen linked—being involved in a game when another player on anothergaming machine 100 or table 60 experiences a Bad Beat. It should beappreciated that the initial jackpot amount of the Bad Beat and the rateat which any progressive amount is increased can be adjusted to adjustthe total expected payback percentage to the player. The addition of theBad Beat may also change the optimal strategy involved for any givengame and the strategy will likely change as the progressive amountincreases. The Bad Beat may be funded from the primary wagers placed inthe wager circles 64. Alternatively, the player may have to place aseparate wager that is specific to the Bad Beat in order to be eligible.

An insurance wager is another side wager that may be provided inalternative embodiments. An insurance wager allows a player to proceedto at least one subsequent hand even if the prior hand was lost. Whenthis occurs, the insurance has been “used” or “utilized.” Thus, if noneof the hands lose to the house, the insurance may go unused. The playermay be required to place the insurance wagers prior to reviewing theplayer's initial group of cards. Alternatively, the player may beallowed to place the insurance wager(s) after seeing either their cardsor the dealer's cards, or a portion thereof.

Various possible insurance wagers will now be discussed while generallyreferring to the preferred embodiment where the player receives aninitial hand of six cards and separates those cards into three two-cardHold 'Em starting hands. If an insurance wager was placed that coveredthe first hand, and the player lost the first hand, the play would stillcontinue to the step of evaluating the second hand against the house'shand. The insurance wager may be specific to one associated startinghand, or in alternative arrangements, it may cover all of the startinghands. In embodiments where an insurance wager is associated with onespecific starting hand, each of the first two primary wager circles 64may have an associated insurance wager circle [xx]. Thus, in theforegoing example where the player lost the first hand, but it wasinsured, the player would have had to have placed an insurance wager inthe insurance wager circle [xx] that corresponds to the first hand. Inthe embodiments where a single insurance wager may cover multiple hands,a single insurance wager circle [xx] may be provide that is notassociated with any single hand.

The amount of the insurance wager that is required or allowed will, inmost embodiments, preferably be in relation to the amount of the primarywager(s). In determining the amount that the player is required to wageras insurance, the house will take into account a number of factors inorder to reach the desired theoretical hold. These factors will include,but are not necessarily limited to: whether the insurance wager coversone or more hands, whether the utilization of insurance will result in areduced payout for winning subsequent hands, under what circumstancesthe house collects the insurance wager and at what time the player isallowed to make the insurance wager. Each factor will now be discussedbriefly in turn so that the reader will appreciate the variousembodiments that may occur from the addition of one or more insurancewagers.

The first factor to consider is whether the insurance wager isassociated with a specific hand (e.g., whether it covers one or morehands). In situations where the insurance wager is specific to one hand,the house can generally require the player to wager less to receiveinsurance. Conversely, where a single insurance wager is capable ofbeing used by multiple hands, the house will generally require the wagerto be larger. Thus, if all three primary wagers are required to be thesame (e.g. $10 each), the house may require a hand-specific insurancewager to be the same as the primary wager. In other words, the playerwould have to put up an extra $10 to insure the first hand and $10 moreto insure the second hand. In such a case, the player may be able toinsure the second hand without insuring the first hand. However, if asingle insurance wager would cover a loss on either the first or secondhand, the house may require the player to put up a larger single wager(e.g., $15). This insurance wager would allow the player to possiblyreceive a payout for the third hand if the player either lost the firsthand and won the second hand or won the first hand and lost the secondhand. But the $15 wager would not entitle the player to have the thirdhand evaluated in the situation where the player loses the first handAND the second hand. If the single insurance wager is allowed to cover aloss on both the first and second hands simultaneously, the house mayneed to require the player to wager a larger amount (e.g. $20).

The second factor to consider is whether the utilization of insurancewill result in a reduced payout for winning subsequent hands. Forinstance, in a preferred embodiment, the player may receive 1× the firsthand wager for winning the first hand, 3× the second hand wager forwinning the second hand and 6× the third hand wager for winning thethird hand. But in some embodiments, when insurance is offered, theutilization of the insurance may lower the payouts for one or moresubsequent hands. If the insurance wager is made, but the insurance isnot utilized, the payouts would preferably be unaffected. In onepreferred embodiment, all payouts subsequent to insurance usage may belowered to 1× the wager. Thus, if the player has an insurance wager thatcovers the first hand, but loses the first hand and wins the second andthird hands, the player would only be paid even money on the wagersassociated with the second and third hands. Any number of variations onthis mechanism are possible. For instance, where insurance is used onthe first hand, the player could receive 1× and 6× for winning thesecond and third hands respectively (where there is no reduction inpayout in the third hand). The amount of the reduction in subsequentpayouts therefore determines the value of the insurance. The lessvaluable the insurance is, the less the house would need to charge forit.

The third factor to consider is under what circumstances the housecollects the insurance wager. Preferably, the house will collect theinsurance wager each time the wager is made. However, the house maychoose to not collect the insurance wager when there is a tie, when theplayer uses the insurance, when the player doesn't use the insurance, orany combination of two out of three of the foregoing. The more often thehouse collects the insurance wager, the smaller the wager can be inrelation to the primary wagers.

The fourth factor to consider when determining the required size of theinsurance wager is when the player is allowed to make the insurancewager. In the preferred insurance variation, the insurance wager must bemade prior to the player receiving any cards. However, the wager may beallowed after the player receives and reviews one or more of their cardsor after the player sees one or more of the dealer's cards. As theplayer is provided more information about either his hand or thedealer's hand, he will be able to better gauge whether or not theinsurance will be used (e.g., of value). Thus, as the amount ofinformation available to the player at the time the insurance wagerincrease, the price the player would need to pay for the insurance wageralso increases.

In yet another series of embodiments, the player may be offered theoption of surrendering after reviewing one or more of his cards and/orone or more of the dealer's cards. “Surrender,” in this context meanspaying some amount in exchange for terminating the game early andreclaiming some portion of the total amount wagered. For instance, wherethree primary wagers of equal value are placed, the player may beallowed to surrender two of the wagers in exchange for being allowed tokeep one of the wagers. The exact amount that is required to besurrendered will primarily be a function of the desired theoreticalhouse advantage as well as what information is available to the playerat the time that the decision to surrender is made (similar toconsidering the insurance wager).

Other combinations, orders of operation, additions and modifications tothe foregoing may also be made without departing from the scope of thepresent invention.

Thus, the foregoing should be considered illustrative rather thanlimiting the invention, which is defined only by the following claims.

1. A method of playing a game of poker utilizing a deck of physicalplaying cards comprising: (a) accepting at least N wagers from a playeron a table, where N is at least greater than one; (b) dealing a numberof player cards to the player from the deck, the number of said playercards being sufficient to form at least N player starting hands; (c)allowing the player to organize the player cards into N player startinghands, each of said N player starting hands designated as a firstthrough Nth player starting hand, wherein each of said player startinghands is associated with at least one of said wagers; (d) dealing anumber of house cards to the house from the deck, the number of saidhouse cards being sufficient to form at least a single house startinghand; (e) organizing the said house cards into a single house startinghand and discarding the remaining house cards; (f) dealing communitycards; (g) completing a house poker hand using the single house startinghand and said community cards; (h) completing at least a first pokerhand of the player using the first player starting hand and saidcommunity cards; (i) comparing the completed first poker hand of theplayer to the completed house poker hand; (j) awarding the player apayout based on the first wager if the player's completed first pokerhand is superior to the completed house poker hand. (k) repeating steps(h) through (j) for the second through Nth player starting hands andsecond through Nth wager.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the steps (h)through (j) are repeated for the second through Nth player startinghands until either one of the player's completed hands is inferior tothe house poker hand or the player has received an award for all Nstarting hands.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein if a player's completednth poker hand is inferior to the house poker hand, each wagerassociated with the nth through Nth poker hand is collected by thehouse.
 4. The method of claim 3 wherein the amount of the payout awardedto the player is determined, at least in part, by a pay table.
 5. Themethod of claim 4 wherein there is a plurality of pay tables and thespecific pay table used to determine the size of the award is dependent,at least in part, upon the nth poker hand being compared.
 6. The methodof claim 5 wherein the number of wagers is equal to N and each wager isassociated with exactly one of said N starting hands and each wager isof equal value.
 7. The method of claim 6 wherein the game of poker isHold 'Em, such that each player starting hand contains two cards, andthe steps of completing each hand is performed by dealing five communitycards from which the player and house make their best five-card pokerhands.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein N is equal to three and thenumber of player cards is six.
 9. The method of claim 8 wherein theamount awarded to the player for a superior first poker hand is equal tothe wager associated with the first poker hand, and the amount awardedto the player for a superior second poker hand is equal to three timesthe wager associated with the second poker hand, and the amount awardedto the player for a superior third poker hand is equal to six times thewager associated with the third poker hand.
 10. The method of claim 9wherein the step of dealing a number of house cards to the houseinvolves dealing six cards to the house from which the house forms atwo-card starting hand.
 11. The method of claim 1 wherein the playerreceives a jackpot if he has a Bad Beat.
 12. The method of claim 11wherein the jackpot is a progressive.
 13. The method of claim 1 whereinthe player may place a secondary wager associated with one or more ofthe N starting hands and wherein the player receives a secondary awardif the associated starting hand is of a specified rank.
 14. A method ofplaying a game of poker utilizing playing cards comprising: (a)accepting at least three wagers from a player; (b) dealing at least sixplayer cards to the player; (c) allowing the player to organize theplayer cards into at least three starting hands of two player cardseach, each of said player starting hands designated as a first throughthird player starting hand, wherein each of said player starting handsis associated with at least one of said wagers; (d) dealing a number ofhouse cards to the house, the number of said house cards beingsufficient to form at least a single house starting hand of at least twocards; (e) organizing the said house cards into a single house startinghand of at least two cards and discarding the remaining house cards; (f)dealing community cards; (g) completing a house poker hand using thesingle house starting hand and said community cards; (h) completing atleast a first poker hand of the player using the first player startinghand and said community cards; (i) comparing the completed first pokerhand of the player to the completed house poker hand; (j) awarding theplayer a payout based on the first wager if the player's completed firstpoker hand is superior to the completed house poker hand. (k) repeatingsteps (h) through (j) for the second through third player starting handsand second through third wager.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein thesteps (h) through (j) are repeated for the second through Nth playerstarting hands until either one of the player's completed hands isinferior to the house poker hand or the player has received an award forall N starting hands.
 16. The method of claim 15 wherein if a player'scompleted nth poker hand is inferior to the house poker hand, each wagerassociated with the nth through Nth poker hand is collected by thehouse.
 17. The method of claim 16 wherein the amount of the payoutawarded to the player is determined, at least in part, by a pay table.18. The method of claim 17 wherein there is a plurality of pay tablesand the specific pay table used to determine the size of the award isdependent, at least in part, upon the nth poker hand being compared. 19.The method of claim 18 wherein the number of wagers is equal to N andeach wager is associated with exactly one of said N starting hands andeach wager is of equal value.
 20. The method of claim 19 wherein thegame of poker is Hold 'Em, such that each player starting hand containstwo cards, and the steps of completing each hand is performed by dealingfive community cards from which the player and house make their bestfive-card poker hands.
 21. The method of claim 20 wherein N is equal tothree and the number of player cards is six.
 22. The method of claim 21wherein the amount awarded to the player for a superior first poker handis equal to the wager associated with the first poker hand, and theamount awarded to the player for a superior second poker hand is equalto three times the wager associated with the second poker hand, and theamount awarded to the player for a superior third poker hand is equal tosix times the wager associated with the third poker hand.
 23. The methodof claim 22 wherein the step of dealing a number of house cards to thehouse involves dealing six cards to the house from which the house formsa two-card starting hand.
 24. The method of claim 14 wherein the playerreceives a jackpot if he has a Bad Beat.
 25. The method of claim 24wherein the jackpot is a progressive.
 26. The method of claim 14 whereinthe player may place a secondary wager associated with one or more ofthe N starting hands and wherein the player receives a secondary awardif the associated starting hand is of a specified rank.